ing to agriculture and agricultural products. Experiments are
conducted upon farm and garden products, and the seeds of choice
varieties are distributed among the people. Similar attention is given
to stock-raising and the care of forests. The _bureau of chemistry_
assists in the enforcement of the pure food law.

The department also includes the _weather bureau_, which collects and
publishes telegraphic reports of storms and the condition of the
weather, in the interest of agriculture and commerce.

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE.--The department of commerce and labor was
created in 1903, and ten years later was divided into two departments.
The secretary of commerce presides over the department of commerce.
Its duty is to promote and develop commerce, mining, manufacturing, and
fisheries. It collects and publishes facts and figures on all these
subjects; supplies exactly true weights and measures for any one to
copy; controls stations for stocking waters with valuable fish;
inspects and licenses steamships, rejecting any that are unseaworthy;
surveys the seacoast of the United States, and maintains lighthouses at
dangerous points.

The work of the department is divided among a number of bureaus, many
of which were already in existence when the new department was formed.
Among these is the _census office_, which takes a census of the United
States every ten years, besides collecting other statistics at shorter
intervals.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR.--The secretary of labor presides over the
department of labor. Its duty is to promote the welfare of wage
earners. It makes important investigations, and publishes statistics
concerning laborers. This department includes the _children's bureau_,
which studies problems, affecting children's welfare. It also includes
the _bureau of immigration_ and the _bureau of naturalisation_, which
supervise the enforcement of United States laws regarding immigration
and naturalization.

SEPARATE COMMISSIONS.--In addition to the civil service commission,
Congress has created two other important commissions not connected with
any department. The _interstate commerce commission_, consisting of
seven members appointed by the President, supervises interstate
railroads, express companies, etc., and enforces the laws which control
them. The _federal trade commission_, consisting of five members
appointed by the President, supervises the business of persons and
companies engaged in interstate c